On the lands of the Hyuga clan, Ryohei Hyuga, the Hyuga patriarch, waited calmly at the gates of their village alongside his daughter and the clan elders.
A few days earlier, they had received a letter from the Senju clan regarding a potential alliance against the Uchiha.
As a clan possessing one of the Three Great Dōjutsu, the Byakugan, the Hyuga clan and the Uchiha clan had always shared a certain rivalry.
"Patriarch, the Senju clan is in sight," said a clan member hurriedly at the patriarch's side.
"I see," replied the patriarch, his Byakugan activated.
Thanks to his vision, the patriarch could clearly see more than twenty kilometers away.
At first, their eyes could only see a few meters around them, but with training, the most skilled members could naturally see across several kilometers.
This made them extremely difficult targets for ambushes.
And perfect allies for all types of missions.
…
In the city protected by the Yuki clan, the Uzumaki clan's delegation arrived calmly and headed toward the Yuki clan's lands.
The clan did not truly possess territory of its own, but had earned land within the city as a reward for protecting it against bandits or invaders.
As a result, it did not really have a domain, but lived alongside certain nobles and ordinary villagers.
"I welcome the Uzumaki clan…"
…
In total, this was no longer a simple conflict between three clans.
On the Senju and Uzumaki side, the Hyuga, Yuki, as well as clans such as the Sarutobi, Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, and other Senju allies were ready to lend a hand by sending men and supplies.
The Hije clan, which had carried out an attack against the Uchiha a few months earlier alongside mercenaries and Takeshi Senju, was nowhere to be found.
After their assault on the Uchiha, they had been forced to flee the Land of Fire in haste and were no longer at the center of the conflict.
If the Uchiha clan were to find them, it would mean the end of their clan.
On the other side, the Uchiha clan had now formed alliances with the Kaguya clan, the Hagoromo clan, and other minor clans.
Every clan knew that this stage of the war would be both the most violent and the most decisive, because once so many clans entered the equation, the daimyo would eventually be forced to intervene.
During periods of hatred and violence, it was natural for clans to cease to exist overnight, and the daimyo and the nobles did not care.
But when two sides could not decide between victory or defeat and began causing damage across the entire territory, the daimyo had to act to put an end to the hostilities before the land was destroyed.
The rule was simple: war was acceptable—but if it encroached on the interests of the daimyo and his favored associates, then it was not.
Bringing the Senju and Uchiha clans into the equation was already terrifying.
The level of destruction left in their wake was monstrous.
Fortunately, they already had the habit of fighting away from cities, focusing instead on uninhabited regions or even their own territories.
But with the emergence of alliances, the fighting risked spreading to cities and trade routes…
How could the daimyo allow that?!
Thus, the coming week was likely to be extremely violent.
…
In every camp, among the ninjas, there were children.
After all, at that time, ten years old was not too young for the battlefield.
In the flames of war—on plains, in mountains, and within villages—blood flowed freely.
The blood of ninjas, the blood of children, and the blood of innocents.
As the war raged on, in a cave several kilometers away from the battlefields, protected by a Fūinjutsu that sealed all perception from the inside to those outside, stood Akeno, surrounded by several of his clones carrying children in their arms.
"With him, that makes the fifth Uchiha," said one of his clones.
Counting both the children held by the clones and those sprawled on the ground, there were around thirty children from various clans.
"It's funny, but seeing all these kids in the same cave, I feel like we aimed too high…" said another clone with a worried expression.
"The Uchiha and Senju will probably try to kill each other the moment they see one another, and as if that weren't enough, the Kaguya are psychopaths."
"It's going to be hard to keep them calm."
"All we can do is hope their young age allows them to change."
"System! Return home!"
[Warning, the host is about to be transported back to the original world]
…
On the small courtyard grounds where Chikara and the others were waiting, the rift closed, leaving behind Akeno and thirty unconscious children.
"Let's hurry."
Approaching the children, Izaya did not hesitate and gathered the members of his clan, moving them into a room inside the building, isolating them from the other clans.
The last thing they needed was for them to die a second time the moment they arrived.
Chikara, impatient to see his new companions, stepped closer and first examined each member of his clan, searching for a familiar face.
Not finding the one he was hoping for, a hint of sadness crossed his eyes.
Perhaps he should have been happy knowing she was likely alive, but he could not help feeling a little unhappy.
"Chikara, hurry up."
"Do I need to remind you that your clan members will probably be the first to want to fight?" ordered Renji, pacing back and forth between the courtyard and the room where he was placing his clan members.
"No, in my opinion, it'll be the Kaguya who want to fight first."
"Especially since with them, it's hard to take away their weapons…" said Izaya, passing by Renji.
Maiko, for her part, forced herself to appear serious, even though the stress was clearly visible on her face.
Now that she stood before members of her own clan, she no longer felt confident about the task Akeno had entrusted to her.
How could she become their new leader?
Normally, Akeno should have been careful not to save the most unhinged ones on the battlefield, but mistakes could happen—after all, he was not omnipotent.
Akeno slowly woke up on the hard ground of the courtyard and stood up to see the last children being carried into the building.
"Kaede, you applied a Fūinjutsu in the different rooms, right?"
It would only take the Uzumaki focusing on their perception, or the Hyuga on their eyes, to sense or see the other clans inside the building.
Akeno still needed to tell each of them a good story before allowing them to see the others.
As for sealing their chakra, Akeno was against it.
How could trust be established if they woke up unable to feel at ease?
"Yes, everything is ready," replied Kaede, a hint of joy in her voice.
She would finally be able to meet other members of her clan.
"Good."
Forming hand seals, Akeno summoned a few clones to follow the children into each room.
The plan was simple.
On one hand, he would let Chikara and the others start the conversation, explaining the situation, then he would step in to introduce himself and establish trust between them.
His younger brothers and sisters would have to show what they could do in terms of leadership.
Akeno was not particularly worried about some of them, like Kaede or Izaya, but when it came to Maiko and Chikara, it was another matter.
This was going to be a real challenge, especially for clans with such unique temperaments.
"If everything is ready, let's begin the first wave of recruitment!"